'What people wish was true will always muddy the waters of scientific observation'

One of the major themes of this first season of Masters of Sex was the gap between truth and reality, and these final two episodes, both of which were strong in different ways, made that increasingly clear.

Phallic Victories narrowed the focus to three different pairings, as Virginia and Dr DePaul took a trip out of state, Ethan found his babysitting duties complicated by the reliably unreliable George, and Libby helped Masters prepare for his big day. That big day finally arrived in Man High, a brilliantly paced 55 minutes in which we saw Masters brought low, Libby having her baby and Virginia facing some interesting decisions as both Ethan and Masters declared their love.

In an episode obsessed with forcing characters to face the truth, the most heartbreaking scenes, as ever, were between Barton and Margaret. It doesn't matter how much Barton thinks "curing" his homosexuality will save his family. The bitter reality is that it won't. Margaret's own sober assessment, that she had had some sort of life if not the one she'd thought, was a fairer, more realistic view. Outstanding performances from Allison Janney and Beau Bridges have meant that the Scullys' relationship has been the strongest storyline – I'm hard pushed to think of a better depiction of middle-aged loneliness and despair, and I hope we'll see them next time.

'For all our problems, this is still 30 years of a life, not the life I thought I had, but the life I got with a man I do love'

As Margaret's quote suggested, the world is full of lives we might have had, if we'd made that choice, known that fact, held off from making that decision. One of the strongest aspects of Masters of Sex as a show is that it recognises this: we are permanently offered glimpses of its characters' alternative futures.

Thus there's the world in which Virginia never had kids, stayed with George and remained a singer – referenced by the lovely scene in which she sang in a recording booth at the fair, watched by Ethan and her family. There's the world in which she was inspired by Dr DePaul to complete her degree and take up the pap smear cause. There's the world in which she throws caution to the wind and heads to California with Ethan and the children (and given Virginia's capacity for reinvention, few people would have been so suited to Joan Didion's golden dream) and there's the world we know: the world where she sticks by Masters and continues to help him with his work. Is it the best life? Well, lets just say that when a broken Masters finally appeared at the door and made his declaration – "there's one thing I can't live without and that's you" – my immediate reaction wasn't "finally" but "oh, god, disaster".

It's not that Masters can't do good – in this episode alone we saw him commit a number of acts of kindness, from putting Ginny's name on the study to saving Scully's job – but ultimately his relationship with Virginia is built on obsession, on the dream he has of her. Put another way, I fear for poor Henry and Tessa if Masters becomes the main man in their lives. Ethan might be equally keen on throwing the world at Virginia's feet rather than allowing her to make her own errors, but he genuinely cares for her children, and wants to provide some sort of home for her. Of course, with Ethan there remains the issue of the punch and the argument, that someone who has done this once when thwarted could easily do it again. I think the show wants us to see the punch as an aberration. I'm not entirely comfortable with that but I'd be interested to hear other people's views.

I'm also not entirely convinced that Masters does love Virginia rather than what she brings to his work. Part of me thinks that it is simply that everything is falling apart and he thinks only she can fix it. It's not a real woman he sees, but a saviour.

Notes and observations

• I would like to see more of Dr DePaul. I like her inability to deploy any sort of charm. I admire her single-minded nature and I loved her calling out Masters with "Who is this 'we'?" That said, she's probably best leaving the jokes alone.

• The scene with Libby's baby, in which she appeared to be quite content to have no Bill in her life, was a neat call back to George's declaration that he lost Virginia to his kids.

• I was amused by George and Ethan's shave-off in episode 11. Really, boys, few things appear more foolish than a duel over who needs to shave more. Why not simply beat your chests and have done with it?

• Thank goodness for Lester and Jane. I love Lester's declarations of love and his awkwardness. Jane is also a very good friend, sticking up for Virginia repeatedly and having a much-needed go at Masters.

• I do love you, Masters of Sex, but you can be brain-crushingly obvious at times. "Man can go anywhere, he just has to take his own atmosphere with him" – hmm, here's the lead piping you just hit me over the head with, thanks.

• If the dialogue is occasionally clunky, the acting is superlative. In addition to Janney and Bridges, Caitlin Fitzgerald made Libby so much more than an abandoned wife, Nicholas D'Agosto perfectly captured Ethan's insecurities and strengths, Michael Sheen turned in an incredible performance as a damaged man who is understandable if rarely likeable and Lizzy Caplan was glorious in a show that should make her a major star.

• Finally I am interested to see where they go next season. Will Bill be reinstated? Will he move to another hospital? If so what happens to everyone else? It's worse than when teen shows get to the university season and everyone mysteriously attends the same college and no one queries it. (Yes, I could look up the answer to this question, but I'm enjoying this series as separate from the real-life story, so I'd like to be surprised next year rather than simply find out.)

Quote of the week

"I feel so ashamed. I showed myself, my insides, my vaginal walls – it's as though I brought down an entire kingdom." Jane inadvertently makes me think of Joshua and the Battle of Jericho in connection with her vagina, an image I will now never be able to erase.

Sexual advice of the week

"I'm a doctor – I can spot a statistically average masturbator from a mile away." Wow, Bill, I'm just not quite sure what to do with that information (nor, clearly, was Lester).

Overall, this was a strong first season and I'm saddened that it hasn't picked up the fanbase it deserves, though its nomination for the Best TV drama at the Golden Globe suggests it has won critics over, at least. Hopefully more people will come to it before season two, as it's an interesting show and says a lot about our complicated relationships with truth, deception and intimacy. Thanks to those of you who did turn up to discuss it every week – you've all been fantastic.